correction

Running head:

STRESS AND LIFESPAN 2

STRESS AND LIFESPAN 2

Analysis of Stress

Name: Samira Regag

Instructor: Dr Kennebrew

Institution: Lincoln University

Course: Theories of Intervention

Date: March 20, 2021

Introduction

Intrinsic and extrinsic stimulus associated with evoking biological responses among humans are known as stress. In relation, human experience compensatory reactions to the stresses identified as stress responses. Stress is an aggravation or a triggering factor that leads to unhealthy pathological conditions. Common consequences of stress comprise of mental health issues including depression, anxiety, or personality disorders. Stress has a peculiar way of affecting the brain, a person’s immune system, as well as causing vast kinds of psychological factors. The main concern over the impact of stress emerges from an emphasis on the bidirectional communication that exists amid the nervous system and a person’s immune system. The nervous system has an impending effect towards the functionality of the immune system because it interferes with neurotransmitters that the body releases through the nerve terminals. Endocrine organs are also known to release neurotransmitters in a more indirect manner via the process of secretion.

Effects of Stress on the Brain

Stress and brain function complications is a significant area of study that demonstrates the dissimilarities between the long-term and short-term effects. Through analysis and scrutiny of different forms of literature, it is clear that hormones present receptors at the peripheral tissues and lack access to a central nervous system (CNS) of the body. Occasionally, anti-inflammatory drugs have been administered to people dealing with stress to address behavioral as well as cognitive disorders among other common issues such as steroid psychosis (Yaribeygi et al., 2017). For over five decades, studies targeting the effects that stress has towards nervous systems have been conducted. Common results from the studies indicated that stress has numerous implications towards the human nervous system and lead to structural alterations within different parts of the human brain.

Chronic stress results into atrophy of the human brain mass along with decreasing the weight of the brain. The structural changes are likely to contribute to dissimilar forms of reaction to stress, cognition, as well as memory (Yaribeygi et al., 2017). Levels of intensity and the degree of changes happen to dissimilar when determining stress levels in addition to the duration that a person is in stress. James Baldwin makes a significant statement with a hidden meaning when he claims, “To be a Negro in this country and to be relatively conscious is to be in a rage almost all the time.” Arguably, the statement makes upright sense from a psychological perspective because it has interest on the trauma, exhaustion, in addition to rage that one race, Black Americans, faces from acts against their race (Kumar et al., 2013). For several decades since Baldwin made the statement in the mid-60s, the statement has been applicable in most incidences that have involved the injustice and unfair treatment of Black Americans. Through an analysis of such proverbial claims made in relation to the amount of stress that certain minority groups face, it becomes easier understanding the need to research into the effects of stress on the brain, immune, and psychological state of a person.

The connection between memory and stress is an ideal approach to understanding the consequences of stress and mechanisms people employ to deal with the condition. Memory is an imperative functional element under (CNS) that has three categories comprising of long-term, short-term, as well as sensory (Yaribeygi et al., 2017). A short-term memory relies on the functions from the frontal in addition to parietal lobes, as the long-term memory requires function from large areas of the human brain. The total function of the memory amongst humans along with the conversion affiliated with short to long term memory tend to be dependent towards the hippocampus (Yaribeygi et al., 2017). The hippocampus is a segment around the brain that contains the highest density composition of glucocorticoid steroid receptors. Furthermore, the hippocampus also comprises of a high level of response linked to stress. Stress has imminent effects towards the processes taking place within the memory. Different research studies demonstrate that stress has the potential to cause functional as well as structural alterations within the hippocampus section of a person’s brain.

Effects of Stress on the Immune System

The studies in psychoneuroimmunology (PNI) burgeon to a more sophisticated clinical experiment that investigated ways in which care giving has an impact on an immune system. Furthermore, the research also focused on methods in which stress may cause a delay in wound healing as well as ways that pretreatment using antidepressant averts conditions such as cytokine-induced depression during therapy for patients dealing with chronic diseases such as cancer. Psychoneuroimmunology is the field study that concentrates on the interactions amid the central nervous system, an endocrine system, in addition to the immune system (Kumar et al., 2013). Additionally, the scientific study also focuses on the influence of behavior or stress on the interactions and repercussion for health wellbeing from the interactions. Nonetheless, an examination of the effects of psychological and pharmacological intercession that modulate the interactions is integrated as part of the investigation (Kumar et al., 2013). Nervous systems have a tendency of influencing immune system function through neurotransmitters discharged through nerve terminals as well as an indirect secretion coming from endocrine organs.

In reflection to such scientific studies that prove stress has the capability to trigger functional and structural alterations around the hippocampus part of the brain, one may interpret why most African Americans have a common attitude towards various issues contributing to racial inequity. The application of scientific findings in the elaboration of consequences related to stress is an appealing approach undertaken in this study (Kumar et al., 2013). The stress on the brain is a leading debatable factor that makes it possible for African Americans to consequently experience rage from knowledge of past acts of injustice. As a result, anytime another incident emerges on the mainstream media, it becomes easy for them to associate themselves with brutality and injustice from the system of the government influenced by a number of white supremacists. Almost all African Americans with a history of growing up in less deprived neighborhoods occasionally associate law enforcement officers with inequity and unjust, which is a decisive factor that triggers stress.

Psychological Factors

Psychosocial factors influenced by stress have an effect on the immune system since stressful stimuli cause the development of viral infection as well as tumors. Several aspects of psychoneuroimmunology are significant areas of study starting from molecular biology, clinical, all the way to behavioral investigations. Through a study that targets young adults with the objective of determining ways in stress affects the human immune system, avenues such as the academic stress models are relevant in interpreting the situations involving more minorities suffering from the consequences of stress (Narayan & Williams, 2016). Other relevant subjects of study to understand the impact of stress on immune systems comprise of investigating marital conflicts and stressors originating from caring for a family member. An investigation aimed at academic stress along with anxiety is a suitable category of health implications originating from stress because it explains the outcome involving human response treatments such as hepatitis B vaccination (Narayan & Williams, 2016). In situations involving spousal caregivers, the immune systems of the caregiver are basically less vigorous since they are older and are likely to be experiencing long-term chronic stressors.

A review of wound healing is a form of impairment well acknowledged sequel linked to ailments such as diabetes, advanced ages, in addition to other conditions known to change the immune function. Investigations interested in establishing the relationship between psychological stress and the process of wound healing offer a different scope of understanding the consequences of stress (Mach et al., 2017). Different genders have varying ways of reacting to stress levels. For instance, women experiencing elevated stress levels demonstrate lower rates of the two proinflammatory cytokines that is relevant at the early phase of wound healing. Furthermore, women reported to experience low levels of cytokines after duration of 24 hours reported to have a higher level of stress in addition to negative distress besides the increased levels of salivary cortisol as compared to those with high cytokine levels. The findings provide information on the major implications about individuals undergoing surgery. Therefore, the process of understanding ways in which stress jeopardizes wound healing (Fahad et al., 2015) is an important approach because it ensures that various fields including surgical procedures in the medical department can make significant use of the findings. Additional areas of research should include consequences of stress on wound healing processes and if behavioral intervention is an ideal stress reduction form of intervention.

Achieving Stress Wellness from Conception to Death

Stress has a way of shortening a person’s life expectancy through triggering worry and anxiety. To overcome the negative consequences associated with stress and making certain that one has a longer and stress-free lifespan requires understanding syndromes affiliated with the condition. People have demonstrated remarkable day-to-day commitments that have a high probability of making them vulnerable to stress (Mach et al., 2017). Several health experts concentrated on studying the lasting impacts that stress may have towards the well-being of a person by focusing on the implications of the mind and body. Clearly, abnormal responses are affiliated with the cause of different diseases and disorders that affect the life expectancy of a person. The distress caused by stress not only affects the mental health of an individual, but also impedes any organ system within the body (Fahad et al., 2015). For patients dealing with heart diseases, it is worth noting that stress may contribute to an augmentation in heart rate along with blood flow, which in turn causes the discharge of cholesterol and triglycerides directly to the blood. As for conditions such as asthma, numerous studies depict that stress has a likelihood of worsening the state of the sickness and in other cases the parent’s chronic stress may heighten the risk of a child to develop asthma.

Superlative stress management tactics are required to minimize and, in most cases, eliminate the condition through taking charge of the way people manage a situation that surrounds them. For starters, the identification of potential stressors is an appropriate starting point. The ability to control the levels of stress relies on the identification of the sources (Liu et al., 2017). Until a victim of the condition is in a position to recognize personal contributions to creating or containing stress levels, there is a high probability of remaining outside of control. Since the symptoms experienced are often combinations of kind of thoughts, feelings, in addition to behavior, the action may be slightly complicated and demand for self-reflection (Liu et al., 2017). Making inquiries is an essential since it assist with the process of diagnosing certain personal issues concerning the examination of one’s habits, attitudes, in addition to excuses. Technological advancements have made it possible for people to utilize various platforms such as the American Psychological Association APA as resourceful platforms for inquiries on the identification of personal sources of stress.

Another important commendable way of achieving stress wellness throughout the lifespan of a person is building strong relationships. For most individuals dealing with break ups with their partners or had fights with friends, they have a major likelihood of experiencing high rates of emotions and stress levels. Several investigations based on negative responses to spouses often cause an immediate alteration in stress-sensitivity hormones (Marques et al., 2013). Furthermore, establishing strong relationships is an ideal solution to less conflict, which reflects to minimal stress levels. Relationships have a positive way of influencing the emotions levels and lessening the possibility of succumbing into stress (Fahad et al., 2015). Resting the mind plays out on reducing the amount of stress one may experience. Among adults, it is common that over 40% tend to lie awake due to high levels of stress at night. By indulging in such findings, it is necessary to ensure that one maintains regular sleep patterns to aid in cutting back on stimulants as well as items such as caffeine.

Conclusion

The study has identified stress as an aggravation or a triggering factor that leads to unhealthy pathological conditions. Major concerns over the impact of stress emerge from an emphasis on the bidirectional communication that exists amid the nervous system and a person’s immune system. Hormones present receptors at the peripheral tissues and lack access to a central nervous system (CNS) of the body. Recurring findings from the studies indicated that stress has numerous implications towards the human nervous system and lead to structural alterations within different parts of the human brain. The levels of intensity and the degree of changes happen to dissimilar when determining stress levels in addition to the duration that a person is in stress. The statement from Baldwin is logical from a psychological perspective because it has interest on the trauma, exhaustion, in addition to rage that one race, Black Americans, faces from acts against their race.

The evaluation of such proverbial claims made in relation to the amount of stress that certain minority groups face, it becomes easier understanding the need to research into the effects of stress on the brain, immune, and psychological state of a person. In the brain, hippocampus represents a high level of response linked to stress. Stress has imminent effects towards the processes taking place within the memory. The research places psychoneuroimmunology as the field study that concentrates on the interactions amid the central nervous system, an endocrine system, in addition to the immune system. An analysis of the effects of psychological and pharmacological intercession that modulate the interactions is integrated as part of the investigation. Application of scientific findings in the elaboration of consequences related to stress is an appealing approach undertaken in this study. Using experiments that targets young adults with the objective of determining ways in stress affects the human immune system, avenues such as the academic stress models are relevant in interpreting the situations involving more minorities suffering from the consequences of stress.

References

Fahad, S., Hussain, S., Bano, A., Saud, S., Hassan, S., Shan, D., . . . Huang, J. (2015). Potential role of phytohormones and plant growth-promoting rhizobacteria in abiotic stresses: Consequences for changing environment. Environmental Science and Pollution Research International, 22(7), 4907-4921. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s11356-014-3754-2

Kumar, A., Rinwa, P., Kaur, G., & Machawal, L. (2013). Stress: Neurobiology, consequences and management. Journal of Pharmacy and Bioallied Sciences, 5(2), 91-97. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.4103/0975-7406.111818

Liu, J. J. W., Vickers, K., Reed, M., & Hadad, M. (2017). Re-conceptualizing stress: Shifting views on the consequences of stress and its effects on stress reactivity. PLoS One, 12(3) doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0173188

Mach, N., Ramayo-Caldas, Y., Clark, A., Moroldo, M., Céline, R., Barrey, E., . . . Moyec, L. L. (2017). Understanding the response to endurance exercise using a systems biology approach: Combining blood metabolomics, transcriptomics and miRNomics in horses. BMC Genomics, 18, 1. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s12864-017-3571-3

Marques, A. H., O’Connor, T., G., Roth, C., Susser, E., & Bjørke-Monsen, A. (2013). The influence of maternal prenatal and early childhood nutrition and maternal prenatal stress on offspring immune system development and neurodevelopmental disorders. Frontiers in Neuroscience, doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.3389/fnins.2013.00120

Narayan, E. J., & Williams, M. (2016). Understanding the dynamics of physiological impacts of environmental stressors on Australian marsupials, focus on the koala (0RW1S34RfeSDcfkexd09rT2phascolarctos cinereus1RW1S34RfeSDcfkexd09rT2). BMC Zoology, 1, 1. doi: http://dx.doi.org/10.1186/s40850-016-0004-8

Yaribeygi, H., Panahi, Y., Sahraei, H., Johnston, T. P., & Sahebkar, A. (2017). The impact of stress on body function: A review. EXCLI journal, 16, 1057–1072.

https://doi.org/10.17179/excli2017-480